Description
This online Bible Study on Gratitude contains a 30-day Scripture Writing Plan, 30 days of Gratitude Journaling Prompts, and additional lined journaling pages and Bible Study worksheets. But first, it begins with two beautiful quotes.
“Remember the past with gratitude. Live in the present with enthusiasm. Look forward to the future with confidence.”
(Pope St. John Paul II)“Jesus does not demand great actions from us but simply surrender and gratitude.”
(St. Therese of Lisieux)
The Effects of Practicing Gratitude
We know gratitude and thanksgiving are Biblical principles, commands even, but there is mounting physiological and scientific research being done on the effects of practicing gratitude!
The results of this study suggest that a 6-week gratitude intervention is an effective, low-intensity intervention for enhancing mental well-being but not distress among people with low to moderate levels of well-being and moderate distress, at least in higher-educated women. The sustained effects on various measures of gratitude up to 6 months follow-up suggest that it is possible to promote a lasting appreciative perspective on life. (May 2020)
A review of 70 studies that include responses from more than 26,000 people found an association between higher levels of gratitude and lower levels of depression. (University of New England, Australia)
Many benefits of gratitude also support heart health. Improving depression symptoms, sleep, diet, and exercise reduces the risk of heart disease. Several studies show that a grateful mindset positively affects biomarkers associated with the risk for heart disease. (UCLA Health)
A 2021 review of research also finds that keeping a gratitude journal can cause a significant drop in diastolic blood pressure — the force your heart exerts between beats. Having grateful thoughts, even if you don’t write them down, also helps your heart by slowing and regulating your breathing to synchronize with your heartbeat. (Journal of Positive Psychology August 2019)
Gratitude as a Spiritual Discipline
“While basic gratitude is a set of fleeting and fluctuating feelings, the spiritual discipline of gratitude is an action. It is not just experienced, but expressed. The spiritual discipline of gratitude is practiced not just because it feels good, but because it’s the right thing to do — not just for one’s own good, but for the good of one’s family, community, and society. The discipline of gratitude is in fact not a feeling at all, but a moral virtue.”
(Art of Manliness)
The spiritual discipline of practicing gratitude reminds us…it’s not all about us. We simply cannot produce or create all the goodness in the world. This is one of the reasons why stepping out into nature is so beneficial; we see beauty we had no hand in so there must be something or Someone greater and more creative than us in charge.
Practicing the spiritual discipline of gratitude helps us to look outside of ourselves, even if only for a minute. A simple “Thank you” to someone who has done a good deed towards us or a favor for us reminds us we are not alone and the world doesn’t revolve around us.
The fascinating thing about acknowledging the kindness someone has shown us–they are more likely to extend kindness to even more people. At the same time, we are more likely to do the same for others and become more capable of recognizing the kindness others extend to us.
Obstacles to Practicing Gratitude
1. Business or Distraction
We are so busy or distracted we don’t have time to acknowledge or even recognize the gifts before us. We are too preoccupied with the next thing, we lose sight of the present moment.
2. Our Natural Thought Process
Our brains are naturally inclined to find the negative. Our brains are constantly trying to keep us safe; it’s always scanning for potential threats to our comfort and well-being. This might come across in the attitude of “waiting for the other shoe to drop” as the saying goes. Again, completely rushing through the present moment, looking for what’s next.
3. Familiarity
We become so accustomed to our life that we no longer see it. I think a great example of this is in marriage. We see our husband day in and day out, he goes to work day in and day out and we no longer see him as the handsome guy we once couldn’t wait to see for a date or the industrious fellow who did this, that, or the other for us. He literally blends into the background of our daily life. This could also be akin to the new car losing its new car smell.
4. Looking Over the Fence Syndrome
It becomes difficult to be thankful for what we have when we’re too busy looking at what others have. Greed, jealously, and envy take root and the principle of “What you focus on grows” flourishes. Comparison becomes an invasive mindset that not only doesn’t recognize the good things in our life, it views what we do recognize in a lens of “less than.”
Ways to Practice Gratitude
1. Keep a Gratitude Journal. You don’t have to go big because you just might end up going home. If you’re not in the habit of keeping a gratitude journal, start by writing down five things you’re thankful for once a week–maybe pick a Sunday night. Once you establish that habit, up it to twice a week, then maybe three times, etc.
2. Make Saying “Thank You” a Habit
Train yourself to say thank you to everyone for everything–the waitress, the cashier, the co-worker, the mechanic…especially in your own home and in your own family. Thank your family for the things they do around the house. *I realize this might be hard if you are in the habit of regularly seeing the things they don’t do–which is easy to do!
3. Read Your Bible
Specifically, work through a Gratitude Bible Study like this one, focusing on specific verses in the Bible that speak on the topic of gratitude and thanksgiving. As you come across topical verses about gratitude, rewrite some of them into your own words or compose a prayer using the Word of God addressing thankfulness and gratitude.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.